Prevalence and pattern of amblyopia in a rural hospital in Ghana

ABSTRACT

Amblyopia is a developmental ocular disease of childhood-onset which may lead to persistent sequelae into adulthood. Early detection and management of amblyopia usually result in an improved visual outcome. The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence and pattern of amblyopia in a rural hospital in Ghana. Clinical records of patients seen (from January 2014 to December 2018) at Westphalian Medical Center, Oyoko, Ashanti Region, Ghana, were reviewed retrospectively. Unilateral amblyopia was defined as a two-line interocular difference or more in visual acuity. Bilateral amblyopia was defined as best-corrected visual acuity (BCVA) of Snellen 6/12 or worse in both eyes, with evidence of bilateral ametropia or obstruction of the visual pathway. Following a review of 12,602 patient records, 258 cases of amblyopia were identified. The mean (±SD) presenting age of amblyopic patients was 24.3 ± 16.1 years, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:1.1. The period prevalence of amblyopia was 2.04%. The period prevalence of unilateral and bilateral amblyopia was 1.38% and 0.66%, respectively. The most prevalent form of amblyopia was refractive with a cumulative prevalence of 1.42%. Strabismic and stimulus deprivation amblyopia accounted for 0.36% and 0.21% of all amblyopic cases, respectively. A major cause of amblyopia in this population was refractive error, hence the use of spectacle correction for its initial management. Repeated assessment after an appropriate period of refractive adaptation would elucidate the proportion of amblyopias needing additional treatment modalities. Vision screening for early detection of amblyopia in childhood with accessible and effective management of amblyopia (including refractive correction and occlusion treatment) is necessary to reduce the impact of amblyopia in Ghana.

KEYWORDS:

• Amblyopia
• refractive error
• strabismus
• prevalence

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflict of interest.

Availability of data and materials

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are included in this published article.

Authors’ contribution

AKA and KOA made substantial contribution to the conception and design of this work. AKA performed data collection. AKA, KOA, EAM, CKD, EKA, and DBK analyzed and interpreted the data. AKA and KOA wrote the initial draft manuscript. AKA, KOA, EAM, CKD, EKA, and DBK were major contributors in critically revising the manuscript. KOA supervised the study. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Additional information

Funding

The research received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.